Makoto Aihara
Makoto Aihara is a playable character in both the original Rumble Roses in 2004 and sequel Rumble Roses XX in 2006. She fights under the moniker of "Judo Babe". Her Japanese voice actress is Yui Horie. She was dubbed by Leslie Wilkerson in the first game, with Carrie Savage voicing her in the sequel.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435341/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0952679 Background A young and highly respected Judo prodigy from Japan, Makoto excelled in the form since she was a child. She is a blackbelt (or "First Dan" rank), as evident by her belt.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_rank#Ranks_in_Japanese Makoto is even referenced as being the “current Gold Medalist in the 50kg class.” This is likely in reference to the 2004 Olympics- making her the Women's (48-52kg) Champion.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judo#As_a_sport Despite all of her accomplishments, Makoto enters the Rumble Roses Tournament in order to 'avenge' herself against a girl (Aigle) who defeated her in the past. Learning that Aigle had entered the tournament was reason enough for her- the young champion desired only to be able to finally confront and defeat her mysterious adversary. Along the way, Makoto would become friends with fellow competitors Reiko Hinomoto and Aigle. Makoto and Nomadic Aigle would go onto form a successful Tag-Team called The Great Beautiful Strong Pair. Personality Makoto is a young, energetic, and cheerful girl. She's eager to prove herself and her skills to the world by winning the Rumble Roses Tournament. With most of her time spent in Judo dojo, she is somewhat naive about some things. Despite her young age, she's very much aware of her responsibilities as an athlete and 'celebrity'. Makoto is outgoing and friendly with others, and quickly forms close friendships with Reiko Hinomoto and Aigle, forming a successful and formidable partnership with the latter. As one of the youngest contenders (and one of the smallest), Makoto possesses a youthful personality and looks. As such, her femininity is much more downplayed than many of her competitors. She seems content to portray herself as "cute" rather than sexy. Ironically, a lot of production artwork and promotional images (from the first game) depict her with a slightly more grownup look to her- as well as hinting at a more developed figure than she has in the games. She appears to have some interest in becoming a singer one day, a desire that she backs up by incorporating singing and dancing into her introductions. Her bright and energetic personality is reflected in both her music and her singing during her intro and walk to the ring. Appearance Makoto has a small and lean figure, with fair skin. She has dark shoulder-length hair that's crimped up in the back with a large blue and white hair ribbin. Long bangs come down to frame her face and shorter bangs cover her forehead. She has dark brown eyes and doesn't appear to wear makeup. She wears a white martial arts gi, with the ends of the sleeves have been stitched shut- likely do to her Judo background, where sleeve ends are a common place to grab hold of ones opponent. She wears a traditional Black Belt (with a white stripe denoting her First Dan rank) around her waist. The belt sports her name, in gold Kanji, embroidered on it. Makoto leaves the front of the gi open enough to show off the frilly "full support bra" she has on underneath... Ironically leaving her Karate top even more vulnerable, as it would give her opponent even more to grab onto during a fight. She wears a pair of black and white martial arts shorts, as well as wrapping her feet and ankles- to give her better footing. Her shorts have her (Dojo's?) cartoon mascot pictured on them (the one that appears with her during her Super Star Introduction), over the left thigh. The character also appears on the left side of her gi, over her breast. When Makoto wins enough matches and becomes popular enough to achieve Super Star status, she unlocks a new (very bright and frilly) costume. The entire outfit has a white and light blue color-scheme. Her hair is pulled back into a large white and light silver-blue ribbon in the back. She also wears long sleeve-like garments that cover the length of her arms. They're the same light silver-blue color, with white and light blue trim... as well as lace on the top ends and cuffs. She wears a similar silver-blue and light blue top and collar, with a large ruffled blue segment adorning the bottom of the top. She also wears a short silvery-blue skirt, with light blue stripes and a ruffled lining on the top and base of the skirt. Like with the sleeves, it is has some degree of transparency. The ensemble is completed by a pair of matching high platform-sandals. Makoto also carries a special shiny microphone with her (which she sings her anthem with), with a large ribbon wrapped around it. When Makoto takes part in Queen's Matches (or Mad Mud Matches, as in the first game), she fights wearing a modest one-piece swimsuit (with ruffles on the edges). Compared to most of the other fighters, her swimsuit is relatively functional. Like with everyone else, she also wears sandals as well. Fighting Style Makoto's initial striking power and physical stats are comparatively low. However, she makes up for this with her superb agility and speed, as well as some of the best reversing abilities in the game. If the player takes the time to improve her striking power, and building up her muscle and body mass, then she can become one of the best fighters in the game. These limitations should still be considered during matches. Even with her strength and endurance built up, Makoto is not a head-on fighter. She's extremely agile and quick on her feet, and is arguably the best at reversing her opponents' attacks. Clumsy strength-based fighters (such as Aisha) will be at a disadvantage against her, as Makoto can easily outmaneuver them in the ring. With mastery of timing, she can reverse her enemies into formidable holds and throws that can make up for her comparatively weak strikes. Conversely, Makoto can only take so much body damage before she sustains an injury. This obviously becomes a serious liability to her in a match. Her small size and stature makes her vulnerable to the body blows and holds of strength-based fighters (like Dixie Clemets). She's not best served in regular fights... However, her reverses make her extremely well suited for Pure Humiliation Matches. Killer Move *'Galaxy Tornado Makoto:' A throw that utilizes Makoto's skills in Judo. Makoto first has her left arm around her opponent's shoulder and her right arm underneath their left armpit. As she pivots, Makoto slides the other leg between her opponent's legs and raises it up as she lean forward, pulling her opponent onto her upper thigh. Next, Makoto bounces the opponent up and falls forward, slamming her opponent on their back. **This move can only be executed by have at least 1 meter filled. **With that being said, this move can be done anywhere, as long as Makoto's opponent is on their feet. **In Judo, this is commonly known as the Uchi Mata. Lethal Move(s) *'Hanging Chaos Dragon:' A throw that utilizes Makoto's skills in Judo. Makoto grabs her opponent's right wrist with both hands. As she turns her back to her opponent, Without letting go of either hand, Makoto places her right elbow under her opponent's right shoulder. As Makoto twists to the left, she rolls her opponent over her right shoulder and slams them on their back. **Only Makoto Aihara can perform this move. **This move can only be executed by have at least 1 meter filled. **In addition, Makoto must be facing the front of her standing opponent while they are dizzy. **In Judo, this is commonly known as the Morote Seoinage. *'Wind, Wood, Fire, Mountain:' A multi-throw that utilizes Makoto's skills in Judo. It is a combination of three judo throws, with a submission hold at the end. The first throw consists of Makoto grabbing her opponent's left arm with both hands, rolling over her left shoulder and slamming them on their heads. Still having both hands on her opponent's arm, she lifts them back to their feet and gets read for the second throw. With her opponent facing the opposite direction, Makoto bends forward and throws her opponent over her hips, causing them to land on their stomach. Again, she lifts her opponent back to their feet before starting the third throw. As she twists and rolls her opponent over her shoulder, Makoto falls to the mat and applies a cross armlock to her opponent, hyperextending her opponents shoulder and elbow joint. **Only Super Star Makoto can perform this move. **This move can only be executed by have at least 1 meter filled. **In addition, Makoto must be facing the front of her standing opponent while they are dizzy. **In Judo, the techniques are as follows: Morote Seoinage, O Gashi, Morote Seoinage, Ude-hishigi-juji-gatame. Humiliation Move *'Straddling Knee Lock:' A hold that utilizes Makoto's submission abilities. First she sits on her supine opponent's right side. Makoto then wraps both of her legs around her opponent's right leg and pulls them outwardly to the side. At the same time, Makoto wraps her arms around her opponent's left thigh and pulls it outwardly to the side, while bringing their lower leg inward. As a result, both legs are split and twisted through torsion. **Like all Humiliation moves, the opponent must have their Humiliation Meter at full to execute this move.. **This move can only be executed by have at least 1 meter filled. **With that being said, this move can be done anywhere, as long as her opponent is on their feet. Entrances Trivia *The family name "Aihara" can be interpreted as meaning "Lovely Field" (Ai= Love and Hara= Field). While her first name, Makoto, means "Sincerity".http://www.freedict.com/onldict/jap.htmlhttp://www.behindthename.com/nmc/jap.php *Makoto is one of only four characters who fights using a recognized style- in her case, Judo. The others are Reiko and Benikage (Karate and Ninjutsu, respectively) and Dixie Clemets (American-style Wrestling). *Judo translates to "The Gentle Way", because it does not rely on punching or kicking ones opponent. The name comes from the fact that it is meant to subdue an attacker and force them to submit, rather than by inflicting bodily harm.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judo *Makoto's theme "Summer Memories" is arranged, composed, and performed by an individual credited in the manual as "Ayice". The theme returned for the sequel two years later. *On the back of her gi the text reads '1192 JPN' which is normally used during olympic events. *Makoto is presumably based on Ryoko Tani （谷 亮子'' Tani Ryouko)'', an Olympic-level judoka who won gold in Sydney in 2000 and Athens in 2004 in the Women's (48-52kg) Division. She's also won a record number of World Championships since the mid-1990s. She became quite famous in Japan and characters based on her have appeared in multiple video games throughout the years. *However Makoto could also be based on Kurt Angle who, like Makoto, is an Olympic Gold Medalist-turned professional wrestler. *Makoto is the only person who addresses Aisha as "Ai-Sha"; everyone else addresses her by her proper pronounciation "A-I-Sha." References Category:Babyfaces Category:Characters